


Welome Home

by GigiJackson



Series: One Plus One [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Domestic Fluff, Engagement, Family Feels, Fluff, Gay Keith (Voltron), Hunk (Voltron) is so Pure, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Pet Names, Selkie Lance (Voltron), Shopping, Sweet, boring work, past Keith/?, shay is a goddess, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-26
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2019-07-02 20:42:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15804225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GigiJackson/pseuds/GigiJackson
Summary: After the events of Married??? Keith and Lance are headed to New York, where Keith lives. It takes time to adjust, especially when one of you is a selkie and the other has trust issues.





	1. Whyyy?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CocoandLove](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CocoandLove/gifts).



> You should probs read the first part before reading this...
> 
> I'm giving this work to my sister who reads my work and then says she likes it.
> 
> I have no schedule anymore as I am now a slave to my APUSH class
> 
> This is probably going to be a shorter story than the other one, like five chapters of stuff?? I'm not sure yet

Keith was shaken awake by a flight attendant.

As groggy as ever, he blearily looked around before accepting whatever she handed him and shifting. This made Lance bolt up in his seat and the flight attendant dropped the papers she was holding in surprise as she tried to apologize and then Lance apologized for startling her and Keith yawned loudly. Eventually, things got sorted out and they were both handed breakfasts.

“Morning Lance,” Keith murmured.

“Morning sweetheart,” Lance replied cheerfully.

Keith nearly died at that moment. He felt his face heat up and immediately regretted existing. Lance just mused over the name for a while.

“Actually, I like darling better,” Lance decided.

Keith buried his face in his hands and whisper-screamed. 

“Keith? Too much?” Lance sounded worried. 

“A little bit…”

“I’ll stick with Keith for a while then.”

“Thanks.”

The two ate their mediocre food in comfortable silence. Over the speaker, the captain said a bunch of words he couldn’t understand then sighed and muttered something about landing. Keith really couldn’t make out very many words. Their trays were cleared and they held hands as the plane came into a landing. It was smooth and they docked at the gate almost immediately after. 

“Ready?” Keith asked Lance. He couldn’t believe that this was happening.

“Yeah!” Lance seemed more relaxed than Keith at this point. "Got your pelt?" Keith reminded him. "Yep!" Lance wrapped it tighter around him. 

“Let’s go then,” Keith stood and got Lance’s bags down, which weighed a ton. Lance followed him out of the plane dragging Keith’s small bag. They went through customs seamlessly and Keith was surprised to see how many places Lance had been. They stopped briefly at the airport Starbucks and Keith bought both of them coffee. Lance ordered some fancy frappuccino and Keith got a latte with espresso added. They sipped on them as they made their way out, following the flow of people also leaving. They were headed down the final escalator when Keith saw them. 

Shiro, his husband Adam, Hunk, Allura, Pidge, Coran, and even Pidge’s brother had shown up. Matt and Pidge were holding up a sign that said “Congrats On Your Vegas Wedding!”. Hunk was talking to Allura who was wearing a huge, floppy sun hat and sunglasses. Shiro was smiling with his arm around Adam's shoulders, scanning the escalator for Keith. Coran was talking to Matt who didn’t seem to be listening.

“Oh no…” Keith was horrified. “Why?”

“Look at that Keith!” Lance laughed and pointed at his group of friends. 

“Oh noooo,” Keith was dying inside.

“What’s wrong?” Lance asked. 

“That’s my family, sorta.”

“Really?”

“YES…” Keith grabbed Lance’s hand at the end of the escalator and directed him in the opposite direction.

“Pfffttt! That’s hilarious!”

“Let’s not go over there…”

“But,” Lance resisted the pull, an evil glint in his eyes. “They came to welcome us! We should at least say hello”

Keith was now being dragged by Lance who was much stronger than him somehow. He futilely struggled and gave in. 

Shiro had spotted them and began vigorously waving them over.

“Lanceeee,” Keith moaned, “Whyyy?”

“I want to meet your family! That is part of why I came here right?” 

“I’m doomed.”

Keith started to walk a little more confidently or at least tried to. This was his fiancee and he loved him. His family would as well. Pidge and Matt had started wolf whistles as they came closer. Shiro smiled.

“Hello! You must be Lance!” Shiro said happily. “Keith told me all about you. I’m Shiro, Keith’s older brother. This is my husband, Adam!”

"Hey," Adam smiled widely and winked at Keith. "It's nice to meet you."

“Really? Keith told you about me?”

“HI, I’M KAITE BUT YOU CAN CALL ME PIDGE!” Pidge yelled. 

“Sorry, her hearing is a little off right now… An explosion in the lab partially deafened her again.” Matt apologized. “I’m Matt! Pidge’s brother.”

“Hello, Lance!” Allura greeted enthusiastically. “I’m Allura, Keith’s boss.”

“Hey, I’m Hunk, the resident chef, and Keith's coworker”

“I am Coran! Welcome to New York young man.”

Lance seemed to take it all in stride while Keith was slowly beginning to melt into his embarrassment and except that he would die alone.


	2. How do you mess up pancakes?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> FAMILY BREAKFAST

It took a while for introductions to go around the circle. Lance eventually got to introduce himself.

“It’s so nice to meet you all. My name is Lance McClain and I’m Keith’s fiance.” Lance smiled and grabbed Keith’s hand. 

“Wonderful!” Allura grinned. 

“We should get going Princess,” Coran reminded as soon as he saw a camera. “Before you get recognized.”

Shiro put a friendly hand on Keith’s shoulders as he steered them out of the airport to a waiting limo pulling Adam behind him by the hand.

“If she didn’t want to be recognized, why did she bring the limo?” Keith asked Shiro. 

“It was the only car big enough for as many people as us that she had on hand.” 

Coran opened the door to the car and all of them clambered in after Allura. The car whirred to lie and began moving. The seating arrangement ended up being Allura, Lance, Keith, Shiro, Adam, Matt, Pidge, then Hunk.

“So, how did you two meet?” Hunk started the conversation again. 

“We met the first time at the bar,” Lance said. Shiro and Adam both gave Keith a look. “He picked up my pelt,” he gestured to his fur jacket, “and gave it to me. In my culture, this means an immediate marriage proposal, but before I could say anything he was gone.”

“We meet when I went to lunch with his brother, chairman of the board, Marco McClain. I had no idea that Marco was related to the owner of the bar that I went to or the man whose jacket I returned. Marco introduced me to his sister and brother, Luis and Veronica, then mentioned another sibling, Lance.” Keith stopped.

“I was late due to a shopping trip for the ring. I thought that Keith might want to get married by his customs as well.” Lance picked up the story. “I saw him and immediately proposed back. He accepted and later that day we went on our first date.” 

The group was silent. No one seemed to know what to say. Lance shifted uncomfortably. Keith tightened his grip on his partner’s hand. 

“Anyway, I asked Lance to come back with me so he could meet my family as I had met his. He agreed and now here we are.” Keith smiled. “I think he’s going to like it here.” 

Lance relaxed a little next to him. 

“So, breakfast? We could go to my place?” Keith offered, trying to loosen the atmosphere.

“Sure kiddo!” Shiro answered.

The car was full of small talk. Lance readily answered all questions pointed at him with excitement. Allura was particularly interested in Lance and his family. Keith wasn’t sure if it was friendly or if it was research. He hoped it was the later. 

Shiro began teasing him immediately. “So, he’s cute!”

“Shiro! Stop teasing him,” Adam chided. “He already looks so tense.”

Keith shot glares their way and turned his attention back to Lance only to be elbowed seconds later by his brother. He continued to ignore him and moved closer to Lance. They arrived at Keith’s apartment and flooded out of the car into the tall tower. Keith lived on the 14th floor so they took the elevator to the top and walked down a short hallway while Keith fumbled around his pockets looking for his keys. When he found them, he smiled and slid it into his door and they all walked in. Only Adam and Shiro had been here before, so there were people going around his drawers and rooms as they explored. 

“It's huge!” Lance whispered. 

Keith agreed that it was decently sized for an apartment with two bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, a full kitchen, balcony, living room, dining room, and gorgeous view. He would never brag, but he was proud of himself for working hard enough to be stable in such a home. There wasn’t much in way of decorations as Keith tended to be minimalist and very neat. He turned to see Pidge already lounging on his couch and Hunk in the kitchen with Allura who he was teaching to cook. Shiro and Adam were doing that gross couple thing where they stood and hugged each other. Matt was screwing around with his gaming system and television, complaining about wire setup. Coran had resigned himself to the breakfast bar to watch. 

Lance moved closer to Keith and gripped his hand nervously. 

“I’ll show you where you can put your stuff?” Keith offered. Lance nodded and they went down a side hall to the guest room. “This is the guest room. I know it's not exactly like your home, but you can do anything you want with it.”

Lance walked around the room wide-eyed, his fingers lightly brushing the furniture and bed. He stood and glanced out the window, sighing deeply. Keith shifted uncomfortably. 

“Thank you, Keith.” Lance smiled at him and they returned to the kitchen.

Keith stayed close to his fiance through the morning as he helped with Hunk, who asked Lance what felt like a thousand questions about his home and the food there, which he answered just as happily and began helping with the breakfast after Allura burnt the fifth pancake. 

“I’m still not the best at cooking,” Allura apologized.

“Eh, not the worst I’ve had. Once, my older sister Veronica tried to make cookies and she mixed up the salt and the sugar measurements…” Lance launched into the story, gesturing openly with his hands as he flipped pancakes high in the air and laughed.

Keith stared, lovestruck as he did. He loved the mischievous glint in the blue eyes.

“Now who’s being gross and lovey-dovey?” Shiro and Adam had apparently moved over to the counter as had Pidge and Matt. They were all talking and getting to know Lance so quickly it seemed like they had known each other for years and were just friends catching up over the summer. 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” He grumbled but didn’t deny anything.

“Aww, he’s smitten!” Adam ruffled his hair and laughed before giving Shiro a peck and waltzing into the kitchen. Shiro watched with soft eyes as his husband gathered plates and started setting the table, even getting the gremlin to help him.

“Seriously though Keith, you seem head over heels,” Shiro wrapped his arm around his shoulders. “I’m happy for you.”

“Thanks… I’m a little scared if I’m being honest. I’ve never fallen so hard so fast, except for...” Keith was worried about having a repeat of last time, of having another failed romance.

“I don't think he wants to hurt you or use you for that matter. He feels genuine. Real.” Shiro smiled softly. “I think you two are going to be great together.”

“Breakfast is ready!” Hunk announced. 

The group rushed to the table where pancakes, bacon, eggs, and fruits were waiting for them Keith had no idea how Hunk managed to make all this out of what he had at home but decided not to question it. Lance laced his fingers with Keith and sat next to him. Pidge was not yelling as loudly but still loud. She yelled something about pancakes and Matt. The chaos of big family dinners erupted. Eventually, the food was passed to Keith and he helped Lance grab a few pancakes before they were snatched by Shiro. 

This continued around the table until everyone was satisfied and began to dig in. Keith laughed at Lance when he dumped a whole bunch of syrup on his plate, over eggs and all. Adam kept stealing off Shiro’s plate when he wasn’t looking. Allura and Coran were civilized until someone stole her bacon. Then it dissolved into a petty argument. Lance laughed at almost everything and took all of Keith’s blueberries from his plate. 

Keith slipped into a smile as he slowly ate his rather plain pancakes. He exchanged jokes and stories with everyone. There was a very warm atmosphere at the table.

Eventually, Keith stood and gathered up empty dishes and took them to his kitchen sink where he got to soak them all in water. They spent the rest of the morning cleaning up the syrupy table as well as themselves. Allura and Matt had waged a last-minute food war with Pidge and Hunk. It was a mess. They worked together and got it done pretty fast. 

Soon, people were excusing themselves. Pidge and Hunk were headed to work with Allura and Coran. Shiro and Adam had something that they were busy with today that they were really odd about and nondescript. Keith was suspicious but let them go and hurried to get Matt out the door otherwise he would be there for two weeks without saying anything. It had happened before. 

Shiro burst back in for a moment and grabbed the jacket he had left behind. “Before I forget, here! Bye Kiddo!

Keith caught a brown paper bag that had been chucked at him and opened it.

“What is it?” Lance asked.

Keith groaned. Shiro had got them matching phones. A blue version of the newest model and a red one. “He replaced my phone and got you one, but they match.”

“I like it.” Lance grabbed his from Keith and looked it over. “I like matching.”

Keith couldn’t say no. He grabbed his red one and pocketed it. “So, Allura gave me the day off from traveling, what do you want to do? We’ve got about nine hours of sunlight. We can go to like hobby lobby or something and get you some decorations or?”

“LET’S DO THAT!” Lance squealed excitedly grabbing his hands. The sparkle in his eye was back. 

“Okay, let’s go,” Keith thought Lance was a force of nature. He watched as Lance gracefully slid his pelt on like a jacket. Keith wanted to stay and talk for a while, but he wanted to make Lance happy... He decided that he would try to really talk to him when they got back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the next chapter will probs be a fluffy shopping trip and maybe a little cuteness and possibly kisses?


	3. We should probably talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sure shopping is great and fun, but its time that Lance and Keith talk about all of it. It's hard to understand a relationship with an almost stranger.

Living towards the outer fringes of the cities had its benefits like the time it took to get to said decoration store. They decided to head to the Hobby Lobby closer to Queens, back towards the airport. They hopped on the F train and walked a bit until they gave up and called for an Uber. It took them more time than Keith thought, but they still had fun, and Lance wanted to see everything.

Hobby Lobby was fun. Lance ran in the store, surprising the three cashiers who stood around idly. He grabbed a shopping cart and started on an aisle lined with cork boards grabbing something and Keith just followed along. 

He was too busy trying to formulate the talk that they were going to have when they got back. How does go about trying to lay out a relationship in terms that make sense, despite neither one of them knowing each other that well? Do you go for it, like hey so what are we anyway? Or is it a slower gentle slid into the dms kinda talk?

“Keith? You good?” Lance interrupted his thoughts. 

“Yeah, I’m good!” Keith assured, checking his surroundings before noticing they were already headed back to the front of the store. Lance had grabbed a few vases, some art supplies, and mismatching shelves.

“Ready to go?” Lance went and stood on the bottom rack of the cart and pushed off, rolling down the last aisle, the one full of stickers. Keith watched as he looked through several packs and books before deciding on a few and tossing them in the cart. Lance then rolled further down the aisle, grabbing one last thing before turning back around. 

Keith smiled softly as he did this. They ended up at the check-out and Keith looked at the art stuff Lance had grabbed for the first time. He had grabbed watercolor paint, a sketchbook, a set of brushes, and a pack of embroidery thread. All were relatively cheap and Keith bought them without hesitation. He was excited to see what would become of these and the art that Lance would churn out.

Keith paid and Lance thanked him. They walked out and left the three cashiers to whatever they were doing before. The ride back was silent as Lance stared out the windows as the world moved by. 

They arrived back three hours after they had left and walked to a nearby pizza joint for a quick bite before going back into the apartment. Lance put his stuff down in the kitchen and sat down on a barstool.

“So, what is it you need to say?” Lance said. He seemed slightly irritated.

“What?” Keith asked.

“You kinda make this face? You very obviously want to say something.”

“Oh… Well, I wanted to talk to you. I’ll be honest, I’m not very good at this kinda thing and I’m not the most socially inept, but I still can’t quite catch the subtle things… Anyway, I’ll get to the point now,” Keith paused and sat in the armchair next to the couch. “I think we need to thoroughly lay out what we are so that I never cross a line and we are able to clarify what and how this is going to happen?”

“I see,” Lance looked a little sad. 

“I just don’t want to cross any lines. I want you to be happy as well. I want this to be the best for both of us. I want you to not feel like you have to be here, but you want to be here.” Keith was trying to be straightforward. “I want you to not feel like you only like me because of your pelt.”

“Keith, I do want to be here. I’m sorry if this is moving too fast for you.” Lance sighed. “I understand what you’re saying though.”

“I just want this to be a healthy relationship.”

“Me too,” Lance smiled.

“How can we make this work? I mean I’m not going to be here with you all day so I don’t want you to just stay here. You should have your own life and I still have mine.” Keith paused. This was harder than he thought. “Lance, I don't’ want to hurt you and I don’t want to get hurt. I want to get to know you as yourself and I want you to get to know me as myself. I want to have a happy life with you. I know it is probably too early to say this but when we get married I want it to be love and I want to love you as much as you love me.

“I want to make you happy.” Keith shifted an looked into Lance’s eyes. “I want to be the best husband I can.”

Lance stared back at him, his eyes were definitely watering. Keith watched his face as he processed it all. 

“Keith, I want that as well. I want to get to know you at your best and worst. I want you to see me as me. You’ve already been so kind and accepting of me and I want to be the same for you. I want to be your best friend, your partner in crime, and your other half.” Lance started twirling his ring around his finger. “I know this is new to you, but its new to me as well.”

They both sat in silence.

“I like hugs,” Lance told him softly. Keith looked up at him again. “I really like physical contact and I am pretty clingy.”

“Oh?” Keith smiled.

“I tend to be loud because I don’t like the quiet. I’ve never had a boyfriend before or a girlfriend.” Lance continued. “I like to give gifts and dance. I’m a hopeless romantic.”

Lance stopped and looked at Keith.

“I’ve had a few relationships, but they all ended sourly,” Keith responded. “I rarely do anything exciting outside of work and I live alone. I’m not very good at speaking my feelings and I’m unfamiliar with how this should be. I love my work and I am pretty good at it. I am only clingy when I’m sick or something.”

Lance smiled and nodded encouragingly.

“I don’t initiate hugs or contact, but I do like it. I am a bit of a mess, but I try to stay healthy and happy.” Keith finished.

“Well, now that I know this, I feel like this should be a little better.” Lance stood and walked over to the armchair the other sat in. “I think that this is going to be great.”

Keith looked up at him. Lance smiled down at him and leaned over and pulled him up into a hug. Keith melted into it and they stood there for a while. This was going to be a long one, but they were in it together. Keith didn’t want to let go of this. 

Lance gripped him tighter and then pulled back. “I can’t wait to get to know you better.”

Keith smiled at him. “Me too.”

Lance leaned into Keith’s face and brushed his lips against his cheek.

Keith felt a flush rise up in his face and he froze but didn’t jerk away. ‘Lance’s lips are very soft’ was all he could think. He let himself fall a little farther in love with this almost stranger. 

“I can’t wait.”


	4. It's back to work time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They took some big steps and now, they've got to keep living their life with each other.

The next day, Keith woke up early, around five, and headed to the kitchen for breakfast before work. Lance didn’t seem to be awake yet, so Keith tried to be quiet as he moved around and made himself breakfast. He ate a bowl of cereal and chugged his coffee he made before heading back to his room and getting dressed and ready for work. It took almost no time and he headed back out minutes later. At the last second, he left a note for Lance on the countertop to let him know where he was and what he was doing while he was gone. 

Keith honestly didn’t want to go without at least letting Lance know what he was doing, but he thought it was best to allow him to sleep some more. 

He left the simple apartment and walked down the hall to the elevator. It took him a while to get to work, but he enjoyed the walk and smiled as he arrived at the current tallest building in New York City, Altea Tower, the home base of all operations that the Agency was involved in. 

He entered the same way he always did and took the elevator up to the floor that Team V used for all of their work and research. It was a mostly open space and had an industrial feel to it. He had an office to the side of the main lab where he could do his work when he needed to, but the majority of the time, he spent in the common room with his fellow employees.

He grabbed his laptop from his bag and left to find whoever else was there. 

He found Pidge passed out in the common room on a couch still clutching a bag of chips in her sleep. He smiled and drape a blanket over her, slid the chips out of her hand and set them nearby before taking her glasses off as well and setting them aside.

He peeked into the other offices, but no one else had arrived yet. He reserved himself to sit on a couch near Pidge and opened his laptop. He had to write a report of the trip and negotiations with the council in Cuba regarding their new facility. He should also work on corresponding with Marco and Romelle about the plans for the building. 

It took a few minutes for him to become totally engrossed in his work. His fingers were flying across the keyboard as he went about the report, rewording things to make it easier for Allura to read with her short patience and direct attitude.

Two hours later, he switched from the report to the building design and began drawing it up on a program Pidge had made for him. It took him about thirty more minutes to complete and he revised them both before sending them out to the team for review.

He stood and stretched, his spine now hurting from his hunched position. Luckily for him, the mini-kitchen in the area had coffee. He softly padded over and prepared himself and Pidge a cup, knowing that she’d want one once she woke up. He soaked in the silence of the building and smiled as he sipped his cup. 

While the other cup was brewing, he pulled out his phone and checked it for any messages. He nearly choked when his screen lit up with a long list of alerts. There were a few from Shiro and Hunk, letting him know about their absences. The rest were from Lance. 

Keith opened the messages and scrolled through Lance’s

Lance  
7:14  
Hey, thanks for leaving the note! Have a nice day at work! :)  
7:37  
where are all the spoons???   
I can’t find them???  
Keith???  
My ceral is getting sad!! Im going to have soggy cereal :(  
8:03  
I found a spoon  
(image sent)  
But its too late for my cereal :(

Keith laughed despite himself and opened a picture to see Lance’s hand holding a large serving spoon. He sent a quick text, telling him that the spoons were in the drawer next to the knives, left of the oven. He turned his phone’s volume up and grabbed Pidge’s drink as he shuffled back over. Pidge was still passed out, so he set the cup down next to her chips.

Lance  
8:46  
He lives!  
I found the spoons

Keith  
8:53  
Yay  
What are you going to do today?

Lance  
8:54  
Im going to organize my stuff  
Maybe put out the stuff we got from HObbyLobby

Keith  
8:57  
That sounds fun  
I’m sorry your cereal was soggy

Lance  
8:58  
hows work?

Keith  
9:04  
It’s pretty quiet today

Suddenly a pillow struck him in the face. He looked up from his phone to see a groggy Pidge sitting up on the couch across from him.

“If you’re going to smile and laugh at your texts from your boyfriend, can you at least do it where I’m not trying to sleep?” She yelled before turning back over and tucking the blanket around her.

“Sorry gremlin,” Keith laughed and tossed it back at her.

“Leave my aloneeee,” She groaned under her blanket.

“I made you coffee?”

“Coffee?” Pidge crawled out from the blanket. She grabbed the drink and pulled it closer to herself.

“Sorry again,” Keith tried to stifle the laughter.

Keith’s phone dinged again.

Lance  
9:07  
Cool, sorry in advance if i dont answer immediately  
there’s a lot of things to take care of

Keith  
9:08  
No problem  
Talk to you later

Keith put his phone down again and watched as Pidge glared at him from under the blanket. 

“Is that your boyfriend?” Pidge hissed.

“Yeah, it was Lance.”

“You want to tell me all about him now?” Pidge smiled now that she had caffeine in her. “I thought you promised you would over the phone?”

“I’m pretty sure that promise was for Hunk?”

“Teeelllll meeeeeeee!”

“Fine,” Keith smiled. “We met at a bar when I accidentally proposed to him and then ghosted him both within seconds.”

“What the actual heck? I thought you were kidding but you really met him in a bar? And proposed?”

“Well, not on purpose? I just kinda picked up his pelt, which I didn’t know was a pelt, and apparently, that was a proposal when I gave it back to him?”

“So, you not only just met, you proposed then left immediately? Keith, my man, that is the least classy thing you’ve done, and I’ve seen you pretty drunk after that break-up.”

“Pidge,” Keith cried indignantly. “I know it was bad, I was there.” 

Keith continued his story and Pidge listened closely and made further snide comments regarding Keith’s ability to function like a normal human. By the time he was done, Hunk had shown up carrying a large box and smiling widely.

“Hunk!” Pidge smiled and got up to help him with it. When Hunk showed up, there was usually food to follow. He let her take it and waved to Keith.

“Hey, that’s not for you Katie!” Hunk told her as she began to open it. 

“What do you mean?” She whined back.

“I made it for Lance!” Keith blushed at his name. “We talked a lot about his home and everything he grew up eating so I thought I could try to bring some of that back here for him.” 

Keith froze. Lance was probably homesick and already regretting coming with him. How long until he left like last time? Like Sam did? 

“Keith?” Pidge poked him out of his stupor. 

“Hmm?”

“You good dude?” She shrugged. “You seemed kinda spacey?”

“It’s all good… just thinking.”

“Pffft, like that’s not ominous.” Hunk laughed. “So, do I get to hear all about your trip now? I want to know everything!”

Keith smiled and relaxed. Hunk’s warmth was contagious. Keith assured him and started to tell him about his trip when Pidge interrupted.

“I’m gonna have to duck out because I've already heard it and I can only hear him describe Lance’s eyes so many times, but also I said I would call my parents yesterday and I haven’t so they probably think I’m dead?” She smiled and grabbed her chips before exiting out the door to her lab.

“Anyway, tell me all about it!” Hunk continued. 

Keith hopped back into the story, picking up after the first meeting and how he met Romelle and Veronica to the next day and everything in between. Hunk was listening closely and often interjected or asked for more details about food and buildings. Keith liked to talk to Hunk about these things because it seemed to light a fire under him as he described from his photographic memory buildings that he had passed by and sights that he saw. 

“It sounds beautiful!” Hunk sighed. 

“It was,” Keith smiled. “ So how did your date with Shay go?” 

Hunk blushed immediately at the sound of his girlfriend.

“It was lovely. I mean aside from her brother showing up last second and ruining my chance at asking her to move in with me…”

“HUNK! You never told me that you were going to do that?”

“Well, I wasn’t sure if I was going to until the last minute? Doesn’t matter now, but I really like her… I think she is genuine and kind and so strong.” Hunk got a lovesick look on his face. “I just want her to be closer to me.” 

“Awwwww, Hunk!” Keith teased lightly. “Well, if you need romantic advice go to anyone but me and the gremlin. We’re both hopeless.”

“Not entirely! Wink, wink,” Hunk elbowed him softly back.

“Hey, I got engaged by being awkward so I’m really not a good example.” Keith felt his own face heating up. “Thanks by the way, for making Lance some food, and for listening.”

“No prob, bob! It’s what friends are for!” Hunk smiled.

“My name’s Keith?” He tilted his head to the side like a lost puppy.

“I know.”

“But you just?”

“I know…”


	5. Lake what now?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is still a selkie, which means he still has to return to the water every once in a while.

Keith got off work early having finished all of his work early in the day then assisting Pidge with her current project. She was analyzing DNA and making the genome sequencing faster and more accurate than its predecessor. She was arguing with the code she wrote four days ago when Keith finally clocked out. Hunk had waved to him on his way out. Shiro had spent the day with Adam doing normal couple things like doctor appointments and lunch dates. Apparently, Adam caught something and woke up sick so Shiro stayed home with him. Keith took a train and ended up back at his apartment, Hunk’s food in arm and ready for Lance.

He pushed the front door open and went to the kitchen. He put down the container and went towards Lance’s room, listening for him. As he got closer he could hear faint singing. Lance’s singing. It became louder as Keith crept closer and listened in. It was beautiful and soft with delicate words that rolled and slid into each other. Keith had never heard anything like it before.

The sound drew closer and Keith backed away from the door in time to see Lance freeze up and pause at the sight of him.

“Hi, Keith,” Lance relaxed immensely as he realized who it was.

“Um, I was going to tell you that Hunk made you something?” Keith came up with the excuse of the spot, hoping it would work. 

Lance’s face lit up and he stepped out of his room, closing his door behind him. Keith followed Lance like a puppy to the kitchen and watched as Lance opened the box.

“Oh, I want to give him a hug right now!” Lance pulled the objects out and Keith at least recognized tortillas. Otherwise, he had no idea what it all was. “Look, Keith, he made ropa viejas and tortillas and flan!” 

Keith just smiled at his fiance and relished in the other’s joy. “So, what did you do today?”

“Well, after looking for spoons for a while, I memorized all your kitchen cabinets and then unpacked all of my stuff. Then I decorated and I’ve been drawing for a while.”

“Can I see your art?” Keith was genuinely curious about this. Lance flushed and shook his head a little then nodded. “You don’t have to show me if you don’t want to!”

“It’s okay, I’m just embarrassed. I think that I’m terrible at it sooo...” Lance shrugged. He pried open a container of what he had called ‘flan’ and grabbed a spoon before gesturing to his room. Lance walked in with him, going to town on his food.

Lance’s room was somehow the brightest room in the apartment. It looked comfortable and lived in despite the new arrival. There was a corkboard up on the wall, next to shelves than were new. The shelves had books, the vases, and other things on them. The desk now had a surprising amount of makeup on it as well as art supplies. His clothes were hung up neatly on the rack.

The corkboard had drawings pinned to it. The drawings ranged from incredibly accurate to little doodles. There were plenty of his family Marco, Veronica, Luis, Romelle, those he didn’t recognize and others he hadn’t met yet. There were a few of Keith’s friends and family, of Adam and Shiro kissing, Pidge and Hunk messing with Matt, Allura, and Coran laughing.

Then he saw the drawings of him. 

There were about a dozen, all of him. Him smiling and talking to a rough sketch of Shiro. In another he was looking off into the distance, all serious with his arms crossed. There were profiles of his face and gentle smiles he had forgotten he still had. He stared at one of himself with a ridiculously lovesick look on his face. He blushed at the depiction, but it was so detailed he couldn’t deny it was him.

He looked to one at the bottom of the board. It was the only one in color. A group of seals sitting on rocks in the sun. There were three, all soft browns with big eyes. The smallest of the three had white spots freckling its back. The other two looked very similar, one slightly larger than the other. With a jolt, he realized it must be Marco, Luis, and Veronica. 

Keith smiled and made a note to get Lance more drawing paper. 

“They’re beautiful,” Keith stated. Lance turned red at the compliment. 

“Thanks…”

“Is that Marco, Luis, and Veronica?” He pointed at the colorful seals.

“Yeah,” Lance smiled as the blush started to die down.

“Hey, that reminds me! I was going to ask you about your whole selkie cycle thingy?” Keith didn’t want to seem stupid so he continued. “I know that you have to change every once in a while, but I’ve heard different amounts of time from different sources. And what should I do when you need to do that? Should we go to a beach or do I need to take you back to Cuba?”

Lance laughed loudly. Keith wasn't’ sure what he said that made him laugh that much, but he smiled nonetheless. 

“Cycle? I guess you could call it that.” Lance regained his composure. “To clarify, it varies from different selkie families to regions. My family and I tend to transform every nine days, but our cousins only do it on Midsummer’s night.”

“Every nine days?”

“Yeah, and no we don’t have to go back to Cuba. I would like to go to a beach, but in an emergency I just need freshwater so it could be a bath. Only in emergencies though. It’s not healthy for us.” Lance grabbed his arm and curled in on himself slightly making Keith wonder if he had been in an emergency situation before. “As for you, you don’t have to do anything. You could come with me and have a nice day at the beach, but otherwise I’ll be fine.”

“Oh, do you ever stop?”

“Stop what?”

“Having to go into the ocean?”

“Only if someone steals my pelt, then I would be both under their control and unable to change.” Lance’s face darkened. “It’s been a long time since anything like that has happened though.”

Keith said nothing for a while. He had an incredible urge to protect the other instead, he ended up taking the other’s hand in his own softly, trying to reassure. Keith was going to keep him safe.

“The next one is in two days.” Lance offered. “I’ll have to go somewhere safe to change and I won’t be back until the next day.”

“Okay, where do you want to go? I’ll take you on my bike.” 

Lance snorted. “Keith, I’m sure you can, but a bicycle isn’t going to be fast enough.”

“No,” Keith swatted his arm. “My motorcycle.”

Lance’s face brightened. “Motorcycle?”

“Yep,” Keith was proud of it.

“Well then, let’s go to Lake Taghkanic.” Lance declared.

“Lake what?”

“Don’t make me say it again.” Lance shrugged. “I was researching it earlier today for this.”

“Alright then, I’ll check it out and see what we can do an short notice.”

“Thank you, Keith.” Lance leaned closer and gave him another pack on the cheek before pulling back. “Okay, I’m hungry now! Thank goodness for Hunk. I think I'll have to go grocery shopping tomorrow because you have no idea how to shop for food.”

“Hey! I can shop and cook!” Keith squawked indignantly. “I’ve survived this long.”

“I know, but I’d gladly take over this role from now on.” Lance chuckled and started to tug him along to the kitchen.

***  
Two days later, Keith and Lance woke up early and packed one of the side bags with overnight clothes. They hopped on Keith’s motorcycle and started their trip to the lake. They stopped on the way at a small grocery store and grabbed food for the next two days, filling the other motorcycle bag.

They arrived and checked in before noon, leaving their stuff in the cabin Keith had purchased. He thought it was best to have a permanent place where Lance could go to do his thing. Lance left immediately, his selkie skin around his shoulders, and ran to the beach. Keith, on the other hand, changed into his swim trunks and grabbed a book before heading out after his fiance. 

He ended up at the beach and sat in the sand. There weren’t very many people, maybe one family, so it was peaceful. 

Keith stared out at the water for some semblance of Lance. Then, there it was, a head popped up out of the water. A seal’s head.

Keith stood from his spot and started to wade into the ocean. The seal also closed in on him and soon the two met. His body was pure white with little brown spots like freckles all over his body. The seal happily bonked into Keith’s torso and started splashing him. 

“Lance, stop!” Keith complained. “I’ll get all the way in when I feel like it.”

Lance tilted his head and dunked back into the water. Keith waded further in and dunked his head in slowly. The water was surprisingly clear thanks to the tech Alfor had produced before he died. He could see Lance swimming in the distance, dancing around and playing with fish. 

Keith resurfaced and started swimming out to him. “Lance?”

His fiancee popped back up and nuzzled in closer. The dark eyes stared up at the other and Keith smiled. It was definitely still Lance. Keith continued to tread water and Lance tried playing with him. Keith would’ve loved to stay, but he was human and his legs got tired. 

Keith ended up sitting in the shallow water and enjoying the lapping waves against his body. It was quiet until Lance decided he was done swimming and came to sunbathe.

Lance quickly fell asleep and Keith took the time to really look at this form. He was relatively small and quite lithe. He still had a familiar look to his face that Keith couldn’t explain and was very soft. Keith switched gears and began to pet Lance. Eventually, he stopped that as well. 

The day continued on without much change. Lance woke up and went back into the lake to swim more. As night started to fall, Keith left Lance to finish enjoying himself. Keith sat by himself in their new house and waited for Lance to show up. He ended working on plans for the medical center in Cuba. It was fun for him to mess around with the plans and write up more documents. Sooner or later, he was going to have to get back in contact with the council in Cuba, and maybe, they would have to go visit Marco again.

It was close to midnight when Lance stumbled in. Keith stood and went to help Lance. He grabbed the towel he had set out earlier and started to wrap the other in it. Lance had a happy look on his face but seemed tired and dazed. 

“Hey Lance, did you have a good time?”

“Yeah,” Lance wrapped the towel closer around him. “It was nice but different.”

Keith brought him over to the couch and cuddled closer to warm the damp man. They sat closer to each other than they had since the airplane. It was a comfortable silence and Lance started to fall asleep on him. Keith allowed it to happen. He relished in the warmth of another human and once he thought Lance was asleep, he started again. 

He stared at the freckles dotting Lance’s face and the smile that the man wore even in his sleep. He started to lean closer and gave Lance a quick peck on the cheek, blushing wildly. Keith snuggled closer to the no longer damp man.

“I love you,” Keith whispered.

The silence eventually lulled him to sleep.


End file.
